Retention of older veterans with serious mental illness in a clinical exercise program

Julia Browne; Eric B Elbogen; Kim T Mueser; James L Rudolph; Wen Chih Wu; Noah S Philip; Whitney L Mills; Alexander S Young; Richard Sloane; Katherine S Hall

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1221030

Retention of older veterans with serious mental illness in a clinical exercise program

Front Psychiatry. 2023 Jun 22:14:1221030. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1221030. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Julia Browne^{1

2

3}, Eric B Elbogen^{4

5}, Kim T Mueser⁶, James L Rudolph^{1

7}, Wen Chih Wu⁸, Noah S Philip⁹, Whitney L Mills^{1

7}, Alexander S Young^{10

11}, Richard Sloane^{3

12}, Katherine S Hall^{3

12}

Affiliations

¹ Center of Innovation in Long Term Services and Supports, VA Providence Healthcare System, Providence, RI, United States.
² Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, United States.
³ Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, Durham VA Health Care System, Durham, NC, United States.
⁴ Durham VA Health Care System, Durham, NC, United States.
⁵ Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States.
⁶ Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Departments of Occupational Therapy, Psychology, and Psychiatry, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States.
⁷ Department of Health Services, Policy & Practice, Brown University, Providence, RI, United States.
⁸ Medical Service, VA Providence Healthcare System, Providence, RI, United States.
⁹ VA RR&D Center for Neurorestoration and Neurotechnology, VA Providence Healthcare System, Providence, RI, United States.
¹⁰ Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center, VA Greater Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States.
¹¹ Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States.
¹² Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States.

Abstract

Older adults with serious mental illness (SMI) have compromised physical function that could be improved with exercise; however, retention in exercise programs is a challenge. This study was a retrospective analysis of retention for the 150 older veterans with SMI that enrolled in Gerofit, a clinical exercise program offered in the Veterans Health Administration. Chi-square and t-tests were conducted to evaluate baseline differences between those that were and were not retained at six and 12 months. Retention was 33% and better health-related quality of life and endurance were related to retention. Future work is needed to improve exercise program retention in this population.

Keywords: bipolar disorder; dropout; engagement; physical activity; recurrent major depressive disorder; schizophrenia.

Abstract

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